Combined mirror and timepiece



May 2, 1933. w LA 'HQDNEY 1,906,629

COMBINED MIRROR AND TIMEPIECE Filed April 25, 1931 If WW1? zzzw%% I 5% wxw Patented May 2, 1933 UN TE-D; STATES] E T OFFICE.

7 LL A iiA HODNEY,- or BUFFALO, NEW YORK-=" COMBINED mmnonANDHTIMEIIECE' I Application filed April 25,

This invention relates to means for attaching instruments to} panels,and'particularly to the mounting of time pieces upon rear View mirrorsfor use in connection with'mo torvehicles. V a v V An object of theinvention is to improve attaching means of this type, both as toappearance andoonstruction. 7

Another object of the nventionis to provide improved means for attachinga dial instrument to a face of a panel in such'a man'- ner that the dialor indicatin'g meansof the instrument will be visible through a trans- Iparentsection of the, said panel, with which the instrument maybe easilyremoved and replaced when desired, with which the instrument will beinclosed and protected against natural elements, with which the paneland instrument will be supported in a simpleand practical manner andconcealed entirely behind said panel, with which the panel and attachedinstrument may bead justed into and held in different angularpositi'ons,and which will'be relatively simple, practical'andinexpensive.

Various other objects and advantageswill be apparent from the followingdescription of several embodiments of the invention, and the novelfeatures will be particularly pointed out hereinafter in connection withthe appended claims. o

In the accompanying drawing: V Fig. 1 is a front elevation of part of' acombined mirror and time piece, constru'cted in accordance with thisinvention.

f Fig. 2 is a transverse, sectional elevation of the same, the sectionbeing taken approximately on the line 2'2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a rear elevation of a modification of the same. i

Fig. 4 is a side elevation of the modification; and a V Fig. 5 is atransverse sectional elevation of another modification of the same. i L

Referring first'to the embodiment of the invention shown in Figs. '1 tnd2,'the panel which maybe a mirror 10 is formed of a plate of transparentmaterial such as glass and is of any desired shape. This plate is:providedupon the interior area of its rear 193i. snainatmeu.

face with an 'annulargroove 11 which has a maximum depth less than thethickness of theplate. The section of the plate encompassed by thisgroove'constitut'es what maybe considered as a boss upon the rear faceofthe plate, without increasing the thickness'iof the plate. ;Thesidewalls ofthe groove extend -norma1 to the rear face of the plateandserve as an anchorage for a tubular shell 12 that is open at both ends;This shell 12 is preferably annular in shape and abuts endwise i againstthe rear face'of the plate 10. p

The shell 12 is providedwith an inwardly oiiset end or flange 13, whichextends into the annular groove 11, the extreme inner end of this flangebeing preferably also turned inwardly slightly to serve as an anchorabut-, ment. Theshoulder at the beginning of the offset end or flange 13abuts againstfthe rear face of the plate 10, and the annular vgroove isthen filled with a quantity of suitable cement 14 which, after setting,securely anchors the shell 12 to the plate 10. The portionof the'rearface of 'the plate 10 which surrounds the annular groove is providedwith the usual reflecting floating, and I the area of the rear face ofthepla'te 10, enclosed by 'theannular groove 11, is free of coating,thereby providing a transparent window for a purpose which will appearpresently. a I

A time piece A of 'any suitable make is dis: I

posed withinthe shell12 in a manner similar.

to the mounting of a time piece in its usual casingi The winding'andsetting stem 15 of the time piece extends outwardly from the timepiece through a slot 16 inthe'outer end edgelof theshell 1:2. Thestem'15 may ex tend beyond the edge of the plate 10 and terminates in acrownor button by. which the stem maybe manipulated for winding andsettingithe time piece, in the manner of the i usual watch stem. Whilethe time piece' may be secured within the shell12 in any desired manner,in the embodiment of the invention illustrated in Figs. 1 to 2, it issecured against the shoulder at the offset end13 by a s lit, ring 17which abutts against the outer en of the timepiece and is sprung into aninternal, annulargroove in the-outer end section of the shell 12. i

r so

A second shell 19, which is cup like in shape, telescopes over the shell12 so as to form therewith a complete enclosure for the time piece. Thetop part of this cup-like shell 19 is provided with a slot 16 extendingendwise from the open face or edge to straddle loosely the stem 15 ofthe time piece. Lugs or ears 21 may be provided on the outer face of theside wall of the shell 19 on opposite sides of another slot 20 at oneside of the shell, and a screw or bolt 22 may connect these cars or lugsso as to draw them together and contract the cup 19 along its open endedge, and frictionally and tightly clamp it upon the shell 12, yetpermitting removal of the shell 19 when access to the time piece, or itsremoval or replacement, is desired.

The shell 19 is provided with a lateral extension 23 which may abuttagainst the rear face of the plate 10, and this extension is provided inits rear face with a recess, the bottom or inner end wall of which ismade concave to provide a partially spherical seat 25 facing the openend of the cavity. A ring 26 is threaded into the open end of the cavityand this ring on its inner face is provided with a concave surface 27,in the shape of a segment of a spherical surface, facing the seat 25.The surface 27, therefore, serves as a second seatopposing the seat 25,and the seats clamp between them a spherical head 28 of a stud 29 whichextends through the ring 26 to the rear of the casing, and serves as asupporting arm for the entire assembly of the mirror plate 10, the timepiece and the two shells 12 and 19.

The ring 26 may, for convenience of manufacture, be made of two sectionsa and b so that when the outer section a is threaded into the cavity,the inner or other section Z) need not necessarily rotate therewith. Thespherical head 28 is thus frietionally clamped between the opposingseats 25 and 27, and

this connection provides a universal joint between the stud 29 and thecasing or shell 19, enabling adjustment of the shell or casing 19 intoany desired angular positions in which it will be frictionally held.

The construction shown in Figs' 3 and 4 is very similar to that of Figs.1 and 2, except that the lugs or ears 21 and the bolt 22, as well as theslot in the case, are provided at the top of the shell 19 instead of theside as in Figs. 1 and 2, and the stem 15 is disposed to extenddownwardly in an oblique direction at one side of the supporting arm 29,so that the free end of the time piece, stem is accessible formanipulation from adjacent the lower edge of the mirror instead of atthe top. In this form of the invention, however, the extension 23 isprovided in one face with a slot 31 which receives the stem 15 andconfines it against lateral play during its manipulation to wind or setthe time piece.

Referring now to Fig. 5, the shell 19 is arm or stud 29. which isintended replaced by a shell 32 which also is cup-like, telescoping overthe shell 12, and is provided with a slot 37 extending in an endwisedirec tion from its open end face or edge. Ears or lugs 34, similar tothe ears 21 of Figs. 1 to at, are provided on opposite sides of the slot37. The ears 34: are connected by a bolt or screw 35, similar to thescrew 22, which, when tightened, will draw the split shell tightly aboutthe inner shell 12 and securely clamp or attach together the two shells12 and 32. The shell 32 may have a lateral extension 36 with slots 37 inthe face thereof toward the plate 10 which guides and steadies the stem15 of the time piece.

The rear end wall of the casing 32 is pro vided with an aperturesurrounded by an outwardly extending tubular flange 38. The outer end ofthe passage formed by the flange 38 is somewhat converging and prosvided with a concave seat 39 in the shape of a segment of a sphere whichfaces the time piece, and a ring 40 is threaded into the inner end ofthe same passage. The ring 40 is provided with a partially sperical,concave seat 41 which faces the seat 39.

The supporting stud 29 extends through the outer end of tthe apertureinto the space between the seats 39 and 11 and terminates therein in aspherical head which is frietionally clamped between those seats 39 and41, .so as to provide a universal, frictional joint between the stud 29and the shell 32. The seat 39 of the tubular flange may be provided on aseparate piece 0 which is attached or fitted to the flange forconvenience in manufacture. The outer end of the flange 38 isconvergingly tapered, and for that reason the ring piece 0 need not beactually attached to the flange, since it is held in the converging endby the spherical head 28.

From the foregoing it will be observed that in all forms of theinvention which have been illustrated, the panel and instrument are bothsupported solely from the shell 12, and the latter is in turn supportedsolely by the shell 19, 19a, or 32, the latter. constituting asupporting element having a universal, frictional joint connecting it toa supporting to be attached to an object B from which the mirror andtime piece are to extend. The amount of friction in the universal jointmay be adjusted by tightening or loosening the rings 26 or 40, and noneof the supporting parts are visible beyond the side limits of the mirrorwhen viewed from in front of the mirror. The apperance of the device istherefore very greatly improved, and an extremely practical, simple andcompact construction is ob tained. By removing the shell 19, 19a. or 32from the shell 12, the instrument is available for regulation orreplacement. The

1 It willbe obvious that various changes in the details, which have beenherein described and illustrated in order to explainxthe nature of theinvention, may bemade by those skilled a plate havlng a groove1n*its.rear face, a"

memberisecured in said'groove and extending rearwardly from the plate,an instrument mounted on said member and disposed closely against thegrooved face of the plate, and a support element attached'to said memberby which the plate and instrument are both supported. e

2. Improved mounting means comprising a plate having an annular groovein-its rear face and of maximum depth less than the thickness of saidplate,a shell disposed end wise against the'rear face of said plate withan end edge extending into said groove and secured against removaltherefrom, an instrument mounted in said shell immediately adjacent therear face of said plate, and a support element secured to said shellwhereby said plate and instrument will both be supported only from saidbracket support.

3. Improved a plate having an annular groove in its rear face and ofmaximum depth less than the thickness of said plate, a shell disposedendwise against the rear face of saidplate with an end edge extendinginto said groove and secured against removal therefrom, an instrumentmounted in said shell-immediately adjacent the rear face of said plate,a support element removably clamped to said shell and inturn formed forconnection to a support whereby said plate and instrument will both besupported from said element.

4. Improved mounting means comprising a plate having a groove in itsrearface and of less depth than the thickness of said plate,j

a shell disposed against the rear of said plate and having a portionentering and secured in said groove, an instrument disposed in saidshell, and a supporting member attached to said shell for supportingsaid plate and instrument through said shell.

5. Improved mounting means comprising a plate having a depression initsrear face, a shell disposed against the rear of said plate and having apart entering and secured within said depression, an instrument disposedin the rear of said plate, by said member, and a supporting element,attached to said member so as to support said instrument and platesolely therefrom.

6. Improved mounting means comprising a plate having, in the interiorarea-of its rear face, a wall extendingin a direction normal to the rearface'of said plate, a shell'secured to and supported by said wall andformed to rear face, and secured thereto, and formedtoicontam andsupport an instrument, and a support-1,

mounting means comprising and confined thereto 7 receive and support anv instrument, and a supporting element attached to said shell andthrough it supporting saidplate.

7.. Improved mounting means comprising a plate having a boss. on theinterior of its a shell telescoping with said boss ing element attachedto saidshellf whereby an instrument and saidplate'may be supportedentirely. from said element; 3 I

8. Improved mounting meanscomprising aplate having a depression initsrear face, a shell cementedin said depression and projecting from therear face thereof,aninstru-.

disposed in said shell so as to be visible ment from theexteriorthereon-and a supporting element attached to said shell andconstitut ingthe solesupport for said instrument and x plate.

9; Improved mountingmeans comprising animperforate plate, a shellsecuredto the rear of saidwplate and projecting rearwardly therefrom, aninstrument mounted in said shell and visible from the exterior thereof,and means telescoping with and removabjly attached-to said shell to forman extension thereof and the sole support of the shell, plate andinstrument. 5 f

1 10. Improved mounting means'comprisin'g a. plate, a tubular. shelldisposed endwise against-the rear face of said plate and attachedthereto, an instrument disposed in said shellso as to bevisiblefromtheexteriorthereof, a secondshellftelescoping with and removably clampedto saidfirst shell and con-' fining said instrument in said first shell,said second shell having a partially spherical seat,;

a'member removably attached to said second shell and providingapartially spherical'seatopposing the first seat,- and a stud having aspherical head confined "between saidseats and providingtherewith auniversal joint supporting said second shell v 11. Improvedimountmgmeanscomprising a. plate, .a tubular shell disposed endwise agalnstthe'rear'face of said plate andjat tached thereto, aninstrumentdisposed' in saidshell so as tobe visible from the exteriorthereof, a second'shell telescoping with and" removabl'y clamped to said"first shell, said second shell having a portion provided with apartially spherical seat,-'a ring removably, attached to said secondshell and adjustable toward and from the first seat, and formedtoprovide a second seat opposed-to the first seat, and a stud having aspherical head opposing seats by the clamped between'said adjustment ofsaid ring, wherebysaid stud provides the sole support forsaid plate and:

instrument.

12. Improved mountingm'eans comprising a plate, a tubular shell securedto said plate at the rear face thereof,a second tubular shell saidplate,

telescoping with said first shell to form therewith an instrumentreceiving cavity, and slit endwise for a portion of its length, meansfor causing relative movement of the sections of said second shell atopposite sides of said slit in a manner to clamp said shells tightly toone another, and a stud having a universal joint connection to secondshell for supporting said shell and said plate.

13. Improved mounting means comprising a plate, a tubular shell abuttingendwise across the interior area of the rear face of said plate andsecured thereto, a second shell telescoping with the first shell andremovably attached thereto, said shells together forming an instrumentreceiving cavity, said sec ond shell having an extension from one sidethereof and abutting'against the rear face of said plate, said extensionhaving in the rear face thereof a concave, partially spheri cal seat, aring concentric with said seat and secured to said second shell foradjustment toward and from the said seat, said 'ring having on its innerface a partially spherical,

Y segmental seat opposed to the first seat, a stud extending throughsaid ring and terminating in a spherical head clamped between saidopposing seats to provide a universal, frictional joint between saidstud and said second shell, by which said plate and both of said shellswill be supported solely from said stud.

14. Improved mounting means comprising a plate, a tubular shell abuttingendwise across the interior area of the rear face of said plate andsecured thereto, a second shell telescoping with the first shell andremov ably attached thereto, said shells having a cavity between them,said second shell having an extension from one side thereof and abuttingagainst the rear face of said plate, said second shell in its rear endhaving an aperture surrounded by a rearwardly extending flange, saidflange having around said aperture a segmental, spherical seat facing amember secured in said aperture at the inner end thereof and adjustabletoward and from said seat, said member also having a partially sphericalseat facing said first seat, anda stud extending into said aperture andwhich .is formed to receive and support said instrument, a second shelltelescoping with and attached to said first shell, and having aprojecting boss, said boss having a socket with a concave seat, meanshaving an opposing concave seat removably and adjustably engaged in saidsocket, and a stud project ing into said socket and terminating thereinin a spherical head which is adjustably clamped between said seats.

WILLIAM LA HODNEY.

